>> Challenging weekend for Tim Bridgman
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Castle Combe 26 June 2005
Tim Bridgman has registered an 11th place in round 11 and DNF in round 12 of the 2005 British Formula 3 International Series on Sunday at Castle Combe. Despite the unsatisfying results at the tight, unforgiving circuit, where he started further back on the grid than he would have liked, the 19-year-old Hitech driver remains upbeat about the 2005 competition. “I enjoy racing here and was on the pace before spinning in the second race. It is a hard and biting circuit, where you can pay dearly when attempting to overtake,” he said of the tricky 1.85 mile course, which saw a number of drivers coming off over the weekend. Bridgman himself exited the track during an overtaking manoeuvre in the first half of the round 12 race after trying to regain some places he lost when he spun 720 degrees coming into the straight.
After qualifying 10th and 12th on Saturday Bridgman acknowledged he was looking for some extra pace out of the car. “There was a big gap between the front row and the rest of the grid and that is something we are continuing to work on,” he said following the two qualifying sessions.
By the end of the weekend, although disappointed with the results overall, he felt the team had found the speed to be competitive. “I’m now focusing on preparing for Monza,” he said after the second race.
As a body of work, Bridgman’s racing performance has been quite unique. He won the 2004 Formula BMW UK Championship as the sole driver in a privately entered team; his step-father and a friend the only members of a small but perfectly formed support team who obtained results that exceeded all expectations.
This year championship points have been harder to come by, but it would have been simply too miraculous for everything to come too easily, as Bridgman acknowledges. “The season is only half over, and I’ve already learnt a lot. Last year I was considered a bit of a maverick, and that all added to the excitement of winning. This year expectations have been higher, and I’m working within a totally different team structure - it’s all part of the learning curve,” he said philosophically.
To this end Bridgman has his head down working alongside his new mechanic, who debuted this weekend with a view to becoming full time following a vacancy created last week after Bridgman’s regular mechanic was recruited by the BMW Williams F1 team. Bridgman can expect a busy two weeks with the team before the British Formula 3 International Series resurfaces at Monza on July 9th and 10th.
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